Improvement in water-wheel



drifted Saisies parte emu.

JAMES D. BRYSON AND WlLLIAll/l` R.v DUNLAP, OE NEWCASTLE, PENN-SYLVANIA.

Letters Patent No. 98,552, dated January 4,1870.

IMPRO'VEMENT IN WATER-WHEEL.

The Schedule referred, to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom it may con-cern:

Be it known that we, JAMES D. BRYsoN and WIL- LIAM RDUNLAP, ofNewcastle, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Turbine WatereWheels and Oasings; and we do herebydeclare'that the following isa full, clear, and exact description of thesame, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and letters ofreference marked thereon, making a part of this specilication,in which-Figure 1 is aA vertical section of the wheel and cas- Figure 2, a sideelevation of the wheel; and

Figure 3 is a horizontal section ofthe wheel.

To 'enable those skilled in the art to make and use our invention, welnow proceed to describe itsv construction and operation. l l

Similar letters in the drawings refer to like parts.

Our invention consists of a turbine water-wheel, with buckets of apeculiar co1.struction,and so arranged that every part of their surface,fin contact with moving water, rives power.

The eifect of water upon a turbine-wheel depends on the amount ofavailable bucket-surface presented by the latter. To make such surfaceavailable, whether 'it be straight orcurved, it must be eithertransverse or incline-dto the direction of the watercolumn entering thegates. `A portion of the bucket,

parallel to the direction of the water, cannot receive any of itsirnpelling force, while it obstructs, by friction,.the action of thewater upon the available surface.

In the drawings is shown a turbine-wheel, con structed in accordancewith the foregoing principles, and cast all in 011e piece with itselfand with the crownplate.

That portion, ct a', of the vertical part of each bucket, which thewater first strikes,l shown in fig. 3, is a true curve, whose radius isequal to one-half the width of i the buckets at the discharge end. Theremaining portion, a b, of the vertical part o each bucket, forms aninclined plane, slightly curved inward at its inner end, to facilitatethe discharge, and receives the remaining force of the current after itsdirection has been changed by the curved part a a.

The lower lip of each bucket projects horizontally from the under sideof the vertical part, and forms an inclined plane, c d, iig. 2, whichreceivesv the vertical pressure of the water on its'passage toward thelower issues.

A division-plate, e, projects horizontally .from the under side of the,vertical portion of each bucket, forming part of the same inclinedplane with said lower lip, and of equal length therewith, and extendingin the opposite direction therefrom to `the Vertical portion of thenextbucket in front, the line of junction of such Vplate with said frontbucket commencing at a .clined parts.` Said lower passages are of doublethe size ofthe upper ones, to the end that theformer may discharge allthe water when the Vgate is but half drawn,and thus produce as great aneifect on the lower lips as a full gate can do. The plates e alsoserveto brace thccnrved outer endsa a of the vertical parts of thebuckets, which curved ends are lsubject to greater stress from the waterthan the remaining portions.

Revertng now .l to 'the second part of our invention- E, fig. 1, is acast-iron lcurbfwhich encloses the top and lim of the wheel, having anorifice in its top for the vertical shaft to pass through.

u The bush E', that sustains the upper part of the shaft, may be boltedto' the curb, or be cast in one piece with it. I

For the passage of water to the wheel, there is the usual series ofopenings in the curb,A and, cast in one piece with the latter, and`projecting downward from, forming a continuation of it, is a ring, E",whose oflice is the support of the bridge B, inwhich the shaft Sisstepped.

At a suitable distance below the inlet-openings is a ange, F, cast inone piece with the curb, and extending horizontally from it, whose odiceis the support of the chutes G. l

By casting. the lower ring E andthe flange E in one piece with the curb,greater strength is secured, andthe labor of fitting and bolting theiiange and ring to the curb is saved. v

A ring, F, is secured upon the upper edges of the chutes G, which ringsurrounds the curb, there being an annular space between the two for theinsertion of the gate. 4 e

The gate H is a hoop, of a diametersuiiicient to allow it to slip easilyover the curb, and of such height as to reach within about a quarter ofan inch of the flange F. v l' The gate, also, has the usualinletpassages,gcorre sponding with those in the curb, there being,between the gate-passages, solid portions Isuiiciently large to closethe openings in the curb whenthe gate yis turned.

'lhe gate is supported by radial arms, 1E', extending from Kits upperring to a hub, H, placed upon the bush E. The gate, arms, and hub areall cast in one piece.

The lower face of the hub is turned true, and rests on the top of thecurb, which is turned true to receive it. lhe hub. H largely sustainsall the weight ofthe gate and radial arms, thus avoiding all friction atthe sides ofthe curb.

VVha-t we claim as new, and desire to secure by Let-ters Patent, is-

The combination of buckets, the outer ends a a of the vertical portionsof which are curved transversely of the water-currents, and theremaining portions a b ofthe vertical portions of which are inclined tothe watermurrents, with the lower outer lips c d, and withdivision-plates e, the two latter forming parts of-the samelinelinedplanes, and dividing the passages between the buckets into au upper anda lower series, substantially as described.

WILLIAM R. DUNLAP. JAS. D. BRYSON.

I Witnesses:

A. M. GREENWOOD, O. O. BnowN.

